'He has no choice': Conservative pundit reveals what Vance needs to do for 2028 GOP nomination
WASHINGTON, DC: Veteran conservative pundit and author Victor Davis Hanson, in a podcast this week, argued that Vice President JD Vance would only be able to secure the GOP nomination for the 2028 presidential election if he cut off his friend and Trump critic Tucker Carlson.
Carlson, once one of Trump's loudest supporters, recently broke with the president over the Iran war, claiming that Trump didn't fulfill his promise of no new wars.
Conservative commentator says Tucker Carlson is forcing JD Vance's hand
Hanson joined Ariel Whitman on 'The Western Spirit' podcast this week, and during a discussion on US and Israel relations, he turned to Carlson, a frequent and vocal critic of Israel.
Hanson argued that Carlson is deliberately escalating his attacks against Israel and Trump so that Vance is pushed into a corner when questioned about their friendship.
“He’s deliberately amplifying it to force JD to either say, I don’t disown my friends even when my friends say the president’s unqualified and satanic and should be removed immediately… Tucker’s doing that intentionally to say, you either fish or cut bait,” Hanson said.
Hanson argued that Vance will soon need to make a decision about his association with Carlson, especially if he plans on running for president in 2028.
“JD also knows he [Carlson] has a big audience and if he cuts him off like that, he’s going to go ballistic and turn on him,” Hanson said, adding, “That’s why I think he has a rendezvous because he has no choice.”
When Vance was asked about his terms with Tucker Carlson last month, he said that they remain friends despite their disagreements on several issues.
“I’m not avoiding addressing anything. Everybody knows that Tucker Carlson and I are friends, and I think it’s very obvious that Tucker has said some things that I disagree with. He’s said some things about the president of the United States that I think are just wrong,” the vice president said.
Tucker Carlson broke with Trump over the Iran war
Once one of Trump's staunchest media allies, Carlson turned into his most vocal critic after the president launched a military assault on Iran in a joint operation with Israel.
Carlson has argued that the war with Iran broke Trump's "no new wars" promise and betrayed the America First movement.
He also claimed that Israel intentionally dragged America into its regional issues and that Washington gave in to Tel Aviv’s manipulation.
Last month, he called for Trump to be removed from office under the 25th Amendment, saying that the man needs to be “bundled up and taken out.”
Carlson has also suggested that Israel would have to repent for its attack on Gaza, comparing it to the reckoning Germany faced after World War II.
